Investigators began their inquiry after identifying suspicious artworks falsely attributed to renowned artists such as Paul-Émile Pissarro, Jean Cocteau, Dora Maar and members of the Macchiaioli movement. The investigation ultimately led to a secret workshop run by a restorer specializing in art forgery.
During the search, authorities discovered a fully equipped counterfeiting operation, including hundreds of acrylic and wax paint tubes, brushes, prepped canvases, stencils, counterfeit stamps from defunct art galleries, typewriters, and digital devices used to forge authenticity certificates. Among the confiscated materials were auction catalog photocopies altered with collage techniques to include the fake artworks.
In total, 71 artworks falsely attributed to masters such as Pablo Picasso, Rembrandt, Giacomo Balla, Afro Basaldella, Bernard Buffet, and other internationally recognized artists were seized. The entire workshop, along with the tools used for counterfeiting, has been impounded, while the restorer is now under investigation for fraud and art forgery.
